Requests for clarification from both remain unanswered. But one constant in the varied coverage of the deal was that Tongcheng is getting its hand on a dozen high street travel agencies which formed part of the Wanda Tourism unit

These agencies are in major cities.

Ctrip's move (and the Tongcheng/Wanda tie-up) synchs with the 020 (online to offline) trend in China's e-commerce space. Online companies in many verticals are now looking at ways to connect their digital platform with an offline presence, in a supercharged Chinese version of click and collect.

On its most recent earnings call, Ctrip CEO James Liang told analysts that it was looking to get more business from smaller (relatively) cities, thinking along the lines of helping new users to make a small travel purchase would reap the rewards in the long run, even if margins in the near-term are not great.